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Sometimes a song has the fortune to meet the zeitgeist perfectly. When that happens, a perfectly good song becomes an anthem for an age.

For me, Five for Fighting’s Superman (It’s Not Easy) is that song. Their soulful ballad, written well before 9/11, start with the words “I can’t stand to fly,” and, hitting ever more resonant cultural notes, insists that “even heroes have the right to bleed.” In constant rotation in the weeks and months after 9/11, it still sends me reeling back to those uncertain days. What’s your 9/12 song?